Mission Statement:The mission of Oakland Beach Elementary is to prepare our students academically and socially to be self directed life long learners.
Introduction
In this context report, you will learn about many different aspects of Oakland Beach Elementary School as well as its community and district. This wiki-page is for prospective teachers, new parents and those others looking to compare schools to find this report useful to find the information they need. In this report I will cover three main sections. First I will write about the community background of Oakland Beach and Warwick, Rhode Island. You will learn about the population, ethnic makeup, economic status and neighborhood. Next I will write about the Warwick schools district. There you will read about the test scores for the entire district, the way the district is structured and a program designed to teach healthy lifestyles. Lastly you will read an in-depth analysis of Oakland Beach Elementary School. There you will learn about the history, test scores, population and teachers of Oakland Beach Elementary.
Community Background
As you can see from the picture below, Oakland Beach can be a beautiful place. What you don't see from this photo is the destructive past of this little community. In this section you will read about the history of Oakland Beach, and you will learn about the people who live in Oakland Beach.
Oakland Beach
Oakland Beach is a very defined area of Warwick, Rhode Island. There is one main road in and out, and is mainly comprised of small family homes.
"Most of the neighborhood was developed in the years after World War I. A trolley line helped Oakland Beach become a thriving summer resort before extensive damage was inflicted by the Hurricane of 1938, and further destruction wrought by Hurricane Carol in 1954 cemented the decline." (Dunn)
The result of Oakland Beach's past as a summer resort spot can be seen in housing development. The majority of Oakland Beach's homes are small cottages, located very close together with very small yards in which children can play. There is a small playground and basketball court located at the JONAH community center at the end of Oakland Beach Avenue. Besides this playground, there are no other places in Oakland Beach for children to play. This, some have claimed, is one of the causes of young people joining neighborhood gangs.
Rhode Island is the 43rd most populated state (out of 50) as well as one of the most densely populated states. Warwick is the second most populated city within Rhode Island, with a population of over 85,000 people. (US Census) With over 1000 people per square mile, Rhode Island is far above the national density of 71 people per square mile. Warwick is far above the national and state density average with over 2000 people per square mile. Over 85,000 people live in a little over 35 square miles. With this great amount of people living in such a small area, the diversity level is surprisingly low. When looking at the 2006 race and ethnicity chart for Warwick, RI, we get this message:
NOTE: 2006 Data for the following geographic area cannot be displayed because the number of sample cases is too small: Warwick city, Rhode Island
This shows just how little diversity is in Warwick.
The data available from 2000 is a little more helpful. It tells us that 96.3% of Warwick's population defines itself as white or racially mixed including White. The two largest categories of minorities are Black/African American and Asian with a combined total of 3.4%. The information from the following table shows these figures. Overall, Warwick as a densely populated city is remarkably not diverse. (US Census)
Identified Race (Alone or in combination)
Number
Percent
White
82,636
96.3%
Black/African American
1,351
1.6%
Native American/Alaskan Native
586
0.7%
Asian
1,522
1.8%
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
40
0.0%
Other
851
1.0%
Oakland Beach is the "poor" neighborhood in a considerably affluent city. With the median household income in Warwick at $57,286, Warwick is slightly above the average income level of Rhode Island that is 51,814. The poverty level for families in Warwick is 4.3% almost half of the Rhode Island average of 7.8%. This is also much lower than the national average of 9.8%. An interesting point to see is that the individual below poverty level percentage of 7.8% in Warwick is the same as the percentage of families below the poverty level of Rhode Island as a whole. There is no current data available to separate the communities within Warwick. However, if one were to look at the housing costs in Oakland Beach over the past decade compared to other parts of Warwick, one sees a significant decline in property value. Families with lower income are often drawn to Oakland Beach because of its relatively low housing costs. According to housing trends this may not continue to be the case. With the economy in its current state, investors have turned to Oakland Beach as a cheaper alternative to beachfront property. Driving through Oakland Beach and seeing houses being renovated and small houses being torn down leads me to predict that Oakland Beach is headed for a more positive outlook in the housing market. The table below reflects the income and poverty level of Warwick as a whole, not specifically Oakland Beach.
Income/Poverty Table
Warwick
Rhode Island
US
Median Household Income
57,286
51,814
48,451
Median Family Income
71,022
64,733
58,526
Per Capita Income
29,879
25,937
25,267
Families Below Poverty Level
4.3%
7.8%
9.8%
Individual below poverty level
7.8%
11.1%
13.3%
District
District Overview
"The Warwick Public School District is the state's second largest district after Providence". (SALT) This district is divided into 3 sections called "feeder areas" defined by one of the 3 high schools they fit into. Oakland Beach is part of the Veterans Area. This means that students in Oakland Beach, along with students at Greene, Warwick Neck, Sherman, Park and Lippitt will attend Gorton Jr. High School and then go on to graduate from Warwick Veterans Memorial High School.
District Demographics
There are findings that suggest that the people in Warwick, compared to the average responses in Rhode Island, are not as committed to education. There are nearly 34,000 households that are in the Warwick school district. Out of these, 86.2% of the parents in these homes have at least a high school diploma but only 25% have at least a bachelor's degree. In comparison, 47% of women in Rhode Island who had kids in 2002-06 had obtained a bachelor's degree or above. So on average in Rhode Island, nearly half of children are born to parents with a bachelor's degree or higher and only one in four children in Warwick have the same. (US Census) According to a recent survey at Kids Count only 7% of children in this district are enrolled in full-day kindergarten, this is drastically lower than the state's 52% enrollment average.
Salt Survey Response Rate:
The salt survey response rate in Warwick consistently falls short of the statewide rate. The teacher response rate of 50% for the Warwick schools district is slightly lower than the states average of 55%. The parent response rate of 33% is also slightly lower than the 35% state average. The biggest divide is with the student response rate. Warwick falls short of the state's average of 83% participation with a rate of only 58%. These numbers show that in Warwick, there is less of an importance placed on SALT surveys as a marker for school improvement.
Healthy Schools Initiative
This year Warwick Public Schools has started a program to help teach students at a young age the importance of healthy eating. In collaboration with staff from Kent Hospital, second grade teachers will be teaching specific quarterly topics to help cut down obesity rates in this district. Since implementing this program it has been noticed more prominently in the middle and high school grades. To promote healthier choices the vending machines in Warwick schools no longer sell soda and junk food. They now focus on selling juices, milk and water. This has been a wide spread effort in many districts to slow the deadly disease of childhood obesity.
As of 2007, the Warwick district at the elementary level is listed as Has Not Made Adequate Yearly Progress-
even though it has met each of its 29 targets. (Warwick Report Card)
District characteristics
Number of Households
33,899
Single-Parent Households
8.7%
Adults with at Least a High School Diploma
86.2%
Adults with at Least a Bachelor's Degree
25.0%
School Analysis
Overview of student population
There are currently about 523 students enrolled in PK through grade 6. 51% of the 523 students at Oakland Beach are eligible for free or reduced lunch. Ninety-six percent of the students are White. Fourteen percent of the student body receives special education services in a resource setting and seven percent in a self-contained setting. There are no ESL services offered at this school. The average teacher to student ratio is 1:7 which is slightly lower than the state's average of 1:10 and the city's average of 1:8.
Learning and Achievement: Assessments Mathematics:
Since 2005-06 the percentage of proficiency in Mathematics for Oakland Beach has increased significantly. In 2005-06 45% of students were proficient compared to the state's proficiency of 52%. In the 2007-08 school year the students at Oakland beach outperformed the state's 57% proficiency with a proficiency percentage of 61%. From this data we can see that Oakland Beach is making improvements in teaching students mathematics. Reading:
Since 2005-06 the percentage of proficiency in Reading for Oakland Beach has increased on average 7.5 percentage points per year. Although in 2005-06 this school was under the state average by 3 points with proficiency at 57%, it has grown steadily to become 7 percentage points higher than the state average. Writing:
The last three years Oakland Beach has been underperforming compared to the state in proficiency in writing. However, this past testing year Oakland Beach has performed above the state average by 3 percentage points.
Overall, Oakland Beach has begun to make changes in teaching that are substantially making a difference in standardized testing.
Recruiting and Supporting Teachers
Teacher participation rates for the SALT surveys have dropped nearly 20% since 2004. Compared to the state, which has inclined in participation, this school has consistently dropped. Teachers at Oakland Beach Elementary are most discernibly concerned with the lack of training for teachers, lack of planning time and lack of developed curriculum. Teachers in this school are 20% more concerned about training than other teachers in Rhode Island. A surprising finding from the Teachers portion of the info works report for Oakland Beach is that a highly qualified teacher does not teach 13% of classes. This is much higher than the district's average of 2% and the state's average of 1%. (Info works)
According to the SALT report's findings on teaching methods, Oakland Beach is not diverse enough in its teaching methods. A focus on teachers directing the whole class has been found to limit accommodation to diverse learning styles. This, in the long term will not help students moving on to college where there are many diverse teaching strategies used.
Student Life
Oakland Beach has effectively begun a new behavioral program based on rewarding good behavior. The STAR program is commended by the SALT team as being successful in establishing a caring and nurturing environment for students. (SALT) In the 2006-07 school year there were 20 suspensions at Oakland Beach. The most common reason with five occurrences was suspension for threat/intimidation, the second most common with four occurrences was for fighting. The other causes only have one or two cases and do not seem to be a major problem in this school. At this district level there were 208 incidents recorded. The average suspension rate (per 100 students) for the district is 3.7, Oakland Beach is higher with an average of 5.1 suspensions per 100 students. While these numbers are pretty high, they have decreased since the implementation of the STAR program. No Child Left Behind
In the Oakland Beach no child left behind report card, 17 of 17 goals were met.
This school is labeled Moderately Performing. (Oakland Beach Report card)
Per-pupil expenditures excluding other commitments (from per-pupil expenditures and program expenditures)
We can determine from the following table that the expenditure for students in Warwick is $1,529 more than the average expenditure for students in Rhode Island.
Indicator
Warwick All Programs
RI All Programs
Warwick General Ed
RI General Ed
Number of students
10,684
142,785
10,684
142,785
Number of teachers
1,220
14,160
Teacher/student Ratio
1:8
1:10
Total expenditure
$150,505,508
$1,813,369,500
$116,861,592
1,343,464,065
Total per-pupil expenditure
$14,087
$12,700
$10,938
$9,409
Instruction
$8,382
Instruction support
$2,610
Operations
$2,343
Leadership
$752
Conclusion
Oakland Beach has made great efforts to overcome their history of low performance and standards and have recently been better. This school has become a safe establishment and good choice for parents to send their children to. The administration of Oakland Beach Elementary is devoted to making this school a safe, nurturing environment that focuses on teaching the importance of respect and the power of learning to the students that go there. Prospective teachers, new parents and others interested in Oakland Beach Elementary will find that the best way to learn about this unique school and community is to go there them self and see it first hand.
References
1. Local Area Unemployment Statistics., LAUPA44010003. Department of Labor Statistics. 2.Warwick Report Card - No child left behind 2007 . Retrieved from http://www.eride.ri.gov
3. Population Estimates. US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov/.
4. Indicators of Child Well Being 2008. Rhode Island Kids Count. Retrieved from rikidscount.org.
5. Oakland Beach Report card - No child left behind 2007 . RI Department of Education. Retrieved from http://www.eride.ri.gov/reportcard/07/schools.aspx.
6. Population Estimates. US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov/.
7. Race Alone or combined. (2000). US Census Bureau. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov/.
8. Information Works: RI Public Schools - Oakland Beach. (2008). RI Department of Education. Retrieved from www.infoworks.ride.uri.edu/2008.
Oakland Beach Elementary
Mission Statement:The mission of Oakland Beach Elementary is to prepare our students academically and socially to be self directed life long learners.Introduction
In this context report, you will learn about many different aspects of Oakland Beach Elementary School as well as its community and district. This wiki-page is for prospective teachers, new parents and those others looking to compare schools to find this report useful to find the information they need. In this report I will cover three main sections. First I will write about the community background of Oakland Beach and Warwick, Rhode Island. You will learn about the population, ethnic makeup, economic status and neighborhood. Next I will write about the Warwick schools district. There you will read about the test scores for the entire district, the way the district is structured and a program designed to teach healthy lifestyles. Lastly you will read an in-depth analysis of Oakland Beach Elementary School. There you will learn about the history, test scores, population and teachers of Oakland Beach Elementary.Community Background
As you can see from the picture below, Oakland Beach can be a beautiful place. What you don't see from this photo is the destructive past of this little community. In this section you will read about the history of Oakland Beach, and you will learn about the people who live in Oakland Beach.Oakland Beach is a very defined area of Warwick, Rhode Island. There is one main road in and out, and is mainly comprised of small family homes.
"Most of the neighborhood was developed in the years after World War I. A trolley line helped Oakland Beach become a thriving summer resort before extensive damage was inflicted by the Hurricane of 1938, and further destruction wrought by Hurricane Carol in 1954 cemented the decline." (Dunn)
The result of Oakland Beach's past as a summer resort spot can be seen in housing development. The majority of Oakland Beach's homes are small cottages, located very close together with very small yards in which children can play. There is a small playground and basketball court located at the JONAH community center at the end of Oakland Beach Avenue. Besides this playground, there are no other places in Oakland Beach for children to play. This, some have claimed, is one of the causes of young people joining neighborhood gangs.
Rhode Island is the 43rd most populated state (out of 50) as well as one of the most densely populated states. Warwick is the second most populated city within Rhode Island, with a population of over 85,000 people. (US Census) With over 1000 people per square mile, Rhode Island is far above the national density of 71 people per square mile. Warwick is far above the national and state density average with over 2000 people per square mile. Over 85,000 people live in a little over 35 square miles. With this great amount of people living in such a small area, the diversity level is surprisingly low. When looking at the 2006 race and ethnicity chart for Warwick, RI, we get this message:
NOTE: 2006 Data for the following geographic area cannot be displayed because the number of sample cases is too small: Warwick city, Rhode Island
This shows just how little diversity is in Warwick.
The data available from 2000 is a little more helpful. It tells us that 96.3% of Warwick's population defines itself as white or racially mixed including White. The two largest categories of minorities are Black/African American and Asian with a combined total of 3.4%. The information from the following table shows these figures. Overall, Warwick as a densely populated city is remarkably not diverse. (US Census)
Oakland Beach is the "poor" neighborhood in a considerably affluent city. With the median household income in Warwick at $57,286, Warwick is slightly above the average income level of Rhode Island that is 51,814. The poverty level for families in Warwick is 4.3% almost half of the Rhode Island average of 7.8%. This is also much lower than the national average of 9.8%. An interesting point to see is that the individual below poverty level percentage of 7.8% in Warwick is the same as the percentage of families below the poverty level of Rhode Island as a whole. There is no current data available to separate the communities within Warwick. However, if one were to look at the housing costs in Oakland Beach over the past decade compared to other parts of Warwick, one sees a significant decline in property value. Families with lower income are often drawn to Oakland Beach because of its relatively low housing costs. According to housing trends this may not continue to be the case. With the economy in its current state, investors have turned to Oakland Beach as a cheaper alternative to beachfront property. Driving through Oakland Beach and seeing houses being renovated and small houses being torn down leads me to predict that Oakland Beach is headed for a more positive outlook in the housing market. The table below reflects the income and poverty level of Warwick as a whole, not specifically Oakland Beach.
District
District Overview
"The Warwick Public School District is the state's second largest district after Providence". (SALT) This district is divided into 3 sections called "feeder areas" defined by one of the 3 high schools they fit into. Oakland Beach is part of the Veterans Area. This means that students in Oakland Beach, along with students at Greene, Warwick Neck, Sherman, Park and Lippitt will attend Gorton Jr. High School and then go on to graduate from Warwick Veterans Memorial High School.
District Demographics
There are findings that suggest that the people in Warwick, compared to the average responses in Rhode Island, are not as committed to education. There are nearly 34,000 households that are in the Warwick school district. Out of these, 86.2% of the parents in these homes have at least a high school diploma but only 25% have at least a bachelor's degree. In comparison, 47% of women in Rhode Island who had kids in 2002-06 had obtained a bachelor's degree or above. So on average in Rhode Island, nearly half of children are born to parents with a bachelor's degree or higher and only one in four children in Warwick have the same. (US Census) According to a recent survey at Kids Count only 7% of children in this district are enrolled in full-day kindergarten, this is drastically lower than the state's 52% enrollment average.
Salt Survey Response Rate:
The salt survey response rate in Warwick consistently falls short of the statewide rate. The teacher response rate of 50% for the Warwick schools district is slightly lower than the states average of 55%. The parent response rate of 33% is also slightly lower than the 35% state average. The biggest divide is with the student response rate. Warwick falls short of the state's average of 83% participation with a rate of only 58%. These numbers show that in Warwick, there is less of an importance placed on SALT surveys as a marker for school improvement.
Healthy Schools Initiative
This year Warwick Public Schools has started a program to help teach students at a young age the importance of healthy eating. In collaboration with staff from Kent Hospital, second grade teachers will be teaching specific quarterly topics to help cut down obesity rates in this district. Since implementing this program it has been noticed more prominently in the middle and high school grades. To promote healthier choices the vending machines in Warwick schools no longer sell soda and junk food. They now focus on selling juices, milk and water. This has been a wide spread effort in many districts to slow the deadly disease of childhood obesity.
As of 2007, the Warwick district at the elementary level is listed as Has Not Made Adequate Yearly Progress-
even though it has met each of its 29 targets. (Warwick Report Card)
School Analysis
Overview of student population
There are currently about 523 students enrolled in PK through grade 6. 51% of the 523 students at Oakland Beach are eligible for free or reduced lunch. Ninety-six percent of the students are White. Fourteen percent of the student body receives special education services in a resource setting and seven percent in a self-contained setting. There are no ESL services offered at this school. The average teacher to student ratio is 1:7 which is slightly lower than the state's average of 1:10 and the city's average of 1:8.
Learning and Achievement: Assessments
Mathematics:
Since 2005-06 the percentage of proficiency in Mathematics for Oakland Beach has increased significantly. In 2005-06 45% of students were proficient compared to the state's proficiency of 52%. In the 2007-08 school year the students at Oakland beach outperformed the state's 57% proficiency with a proficiency percentage of 61%. From this data we can see that Oakland Beach is making improvements in teaching students mathematics.
Reading:
Since 2005-06 the percentage of proficiency in Reading for Oakland Beach has increased on average 7.5 percentage points per year. Although in 2005-06 this school was under the state average by 3 points with proficiency at 57%, it has grown steadily to become 7 percentage points higher than the state average.
Writing:
The last three years Oakland Beach has been underperforming compared to the state in proficiency in writing. However, this past testing year Oakland Beach has performed above the state average by 3 percentage points.
Overall, Oakland Beach has begun to make changes in teaching that are substantially making a difference in standardized testing.
Recruiting and Supporting Teachers
Teacher participation rates for the SALT surveys have dropped nearly 20% since 2004. Compared to the state, which has inclined in participation, this school has consistently dropped. Teachers at Oakland Beach Elementary are most discernibly concerned with the lack of training for teachers, lack of planning time and lack of developed curriculum. Teachers in this school are 20% more concerned about training than other teachers in Rhode Island. A surprising finding from the Teachers portion of the info works report for Oakland Beach is that a highly qualified teacher does not teach 13% of classes. This is much higher than the district's average of 2% and the state's average of 1%. (Info works)
According to the SALT report's findings on teaching methods, Oakland Beach is not diverse enough in its teaching methods. A focus on teachers directing the whole class has been found to limit accommodation to diverse learning styles. This, in the long term will not help students moving on to college where there are many diverse teaching strategies used.
Student Life
Oakland Beach has effectively begun a new behavioral program based on rewarding good behavior. The STAR program is commended by the SALT team as being successful in establishing a caring and nurturing environment for students. (SALT) In the 2006-07 school year there were 20 suspensions at Oakland Beach. The most common reason with five occurrences was suspension for threat/intimidation, the second most common with four occurrences was for fighting. The other causes only have one or two cases and do not seem to be a major problem in this school. At this district level there were 208 incidents recorded. The average suspension rate (per 100 students) for the district is 3.7, Oakland Beach is higher with an average of 5.1 suspensions per 100 students. While these numbers are pretty high, they have decreased since the implementation of the STAR program.
No Child Left Behind
In the Oakland Beach no child left behind report card, 17 of 17 goals were met.
This school is labeled Moderately Performing. (Oakland Beach Report card)
Per-pupil expenditures excluding other commitments (from per-pupil expenditures and program expenditures)
We can determine from the following table that the expenditure for students in Warwick is $1,529 more than the average expenditure for students in Rhode Island.
Conclusion
Oakland Beach has made great efforts to overcome their history of low performance and standards and have recently been better. This school has become a safe establishment and good choice for parents to send their children to. The administration of Oakland Beach Elementary is devoted to making this school a safe, nurturing environment that focuses on teaching the importance of respect and the power of learning to the students that go there. Prospective teachers, new parents and others interested in Oakland Beach Elementary will find that the best way to learn about this unique school and community is to go there them self and see it first hand.References
1. Local Area Unemployment Statistics., LAUPA44010003. Department of Labor Statistics.2. Warwick Report Card - No child left behind 2007 . Retrieved from http://www.eride.ri.gov
3. Population Estimates. US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov/.
4. Indicators of Child Well Being 2008. Rhode Island Kids Count. Retrieved from rikidscount.org.
5. Oakland Beach Report card - No child left behind 2007 . RI Department of Education. Retrieved from http://www.eride.ri.gov/reportcard/07/schools.aspx.
6. Population Estimates. US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov/.
7. Race Alone or combined. (2000). US Census Bureau. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov/.
8. Information Works: RI Public Schools - Oakland Beach. (2008). RI Department of Education. Retrieved from www.infoworks.ride.uri.edu/2008.